Machine for pressing soles upon shoes and pad therefor



Feb. 13, 1934. s. J. F|NN 1,946,490

MACHINE FOR PRESSING SOLES UPON SHOES AND PAD THEREFOR Filed April 3, 1929 8 Sheets-Sheet 2 a 580 442 Z62 586 i 4 56 4.73

I V m 1 192 fig 198 444 1 190 191 446 L- W i Feb. 13, 1934. 5, J FINN 1,946,490

MACHINE FOR PRESSING SOLES UPON SHOES AND PAD THEREFOR Filed April 5, 1929 a Sheets-Sheet s S. J. FINN Feb. 13, 1934.

MACHINE FOR PRESSING SOLES UPON SHOES AND PAD THEREFOR Filed April 3, 1929 8 Sheets-Sheet 4 WWW A v x a Q 1 x,

www N QNM Feb. 13, 1934. s I FINN MACHINE FOR PRESSING SOLES UPON SHOES AND PAD THEREFOR Filed April 5, 1929 8 Sheets-Sheet 5 mum-E :snmmmi Z04 VE/V 717/1 i Z/WW Feb. 13, 1934. 3 N 1,946,490

MACHINE FOR PRESSING SOLES UPON SHOES AND PAD THEREFOR 8 Sheets-Sheet 6 Filed April 5', 1929 gin-nuns. J. FINN 1,946,490

MACHINE FOR PRESSING SOLES UPON SHOES AND PAD THEREFOR Feb. 13, 1934.

8 Sheets-Sheet '7 wkwavus Filed April 3, 1929 Feb. 13, 1934. s. J. FINN 1,946,490

MACHINE FOR PRESSING SOLES UPON SHOES AND PAD THEREFOR Filed April 3, 1929 8 Sheets-Sheet 8 Patented Feb. 13, 1934 MACHINE FUR PRESSING SOLES UPDN SHOES AND PAD THEREFOR Sidney J. Finn, Beverly, Mass, assignor to United Shoe Machinery Corporation, Paterson, N. 3., a corporation of New Jersey Application April 3, 1929. Serial No. 352,278

125 (Claims.

has long been known in this country as the Compo process.. In the early use of this process gutta percha cement was employed but more recently celluloid or pyroxylin cement has been found to be much better for the purpose than 'the cements earlier used. In order to secure firm and uniform adhesion of a sole to a shoe by such cements, it is important that a high and substantially uniform pressure be applied to all parts of the sole where adhesion is desired, thereby forcing the sole against the shoe bottom, and that the pressure be maintained for a time long enough to allow sumcient setting of the cement to avoid any possibility of the sole loosening at any point after the pressure is released. It is highly important that the shoe and sole be properly located with respect to each other before the pressure is applied to the sole.

Heretofore in work of this kind the sole and shoe have been located relatively to each other on the sole pressing pad by the operator, who determined by his eye the position of the sole with respect to the shoe and, by time-consuming hand manipulation made the necessary adjustments of the sole with respect to the shoe. Sometimes, in order to conserve the time of the operator of the sole pressing machine, the longitudinal position of the sole with respect to the shoe was determined and a tack inserted through the heel-seat portion of the sole but even then the operator of the sole pressing machine had to determine the lateral position of the sole with respect to the shoe. This procedure necessitates a separate operation and does not assure accurate positioning of the sole.

Heretofore the pad by which pressure was applied to the shoe sole consisted of an inflatable bag usually of rubber covered with leather to which compressed air was supplied to cause infiation of the bag and consequent pressure of the bag against the sole. This arrangement, however, requires the installation of a complicated and expensive equipment to provide a supply of compressed air.

Important objects of this invention are to provide mechanism for quickly locating an unattached sole and a shoe to which the sole is to be cemented in proper relation to each other upon a sole pressing pad, to provide improved pressure-applying mechanism, and to provide selfcontained. mechanism for maintaining the pressure applied to the shoe and sole for the desired time after the shoe is removed from the pressure applying mechanism.

A feature of the present invention consists in improved means for engaging the edge face of a sole placed upon a.sole pressing pad, said means acting to hold the sole against movement in its own plane. In the illustrated machine the sole engaging members operate as feelers and are so constructed and arranged that they will engage a sole of any size in the position in which the sole is placed by the operator upon the pad. That is, the operator may exercise his judgment as to the proper location of the sole with respect to the pad or may place it more or less at random on the pad, no special care or attention being required by the operator in placing the sole on the pad. The feelers will find the sole in any one of a number of different positions in which it is placed by the operator and will hold it in that position. If the operator notices, after the sole has been engaged by the feelers, that a different position of the sole on the pad is desirable, he may shift the sole and the feelers transversely of the pad without disturbing the holding relation of the feelers upon the sole. Preferably and as illustrated, separate feelers are provided for the forepart of the sole and for the heel end of the sole. The forepart feelers comprise a pair of. members for engaging the edge face of the sole at the sides of the toe, a pair of members for engaging the sole adjacent to the ends of the ball line, and a member for engaging the toe end of the sole. The toe end engaging feeler is locked against movement outwardly of the sole, while the members of each pair of the other forepart feelers are locked against movement of separation relatively to each other. The heel holding means, as illustrated, comprises members which act as feelers similarly to engage opposite sides of the heel end of the sole. As illustrated, the forepart feelers are movable into and out of position over one end of the pad, their movement being preferably lengthwise of the pad, and the feelers for engaging the heel end of the sole are movable into and out of position over the heel end illustrated, mechanism is provided for permitting the forepart feelers and the heel end feelers to move simultaneously into operative position on the pad and to withdraw them simultaneously from their position on the pad.

In the illustrated machine, in accordance with another feature of the invention, means for locating the shoe relatively to the sole is brought into position by operation of the sole holding feelers above referred to. Preferably shoe engaging members or gages are superimposed upon the feelers to locate the shoe relatively to the sole by engaging the shoe at points corresponding to the points at which the feelers engage the sole, and the shoe gages and feelers are arranged for relative adjustment to permit the proper extension of the sole beyond the shoe at those'points where the sole extension is variable. Since the sole extension has its greatest variability adjacent to the ends of the ball line, means may be provided for relatively adjusting equally and oppositely the sole gages and feelers at the ends of the ball line to cause them to engage the shoe and sole at the corresponding points.

It may be desirable, after the sole has been engaged by the feelers, to orient the sole, that is, to change the direction of its longitudinal median line with respect to the pad. For-this reason, and in accordance with still another feature of the invention, the pair of feelers which engages the sides of the toe portion of the sole and the pair of feelers which engages the sole adjacent to the ball-line are arranged for movement transversely of the sole in either direction. while they still hold the sole, that is, while each pair is held from relative movement of separation. Such movement of these members, however, is resisted by substantial friction. By applying pressure to, either one of either pair of said feelers or to the .shoe gages, that pair may be shifted transversely of the pad and hence the direction of the sole lengthwise of the pad may be shifted. The pair of heel end holding feelers is also arranged for movement transversely of the pad against frictional resistance while holding the sole, and the heel holding feelers may be shifted transversely of the pad while the forepart of the sole is held against movement by the forepart feelers slightly to distort a sole the swing of which does not correspond exactly to that of the shoe to which it is being attached, so that the sole will be located properly with respect to the shoe at the heel end thereof. In the illustrated machine -means is provided for restoring'each pair of feelers and shoe gages to central position, which means is operated automatically as an incident to withdrawal of the members from operative position on the pad.

As illustrated herein, and in accordance with other features of the invention. the sole engaging pad through which pressure is applied to the sole. comprises a dilatable or distortable member having sufficient exposed surface to receive the largest sole to be treated and having sufficient flexibility to enable it to conform to the shape of a shoe bottom when pressure is applied. Preferably and as illustrated, the dilatable member constitutes a portion of the wall of a closed vessel containing a fluid, preferably a liquid, and dilation of this portion is effected by deformation or distortion of another wall portion of 'the vessel, for example by pressure applied to its bottom portion by a plunger, the pressure being transferred by the liquid uniformly to the sole engaging wall of the paratus, the vessel is preferably completely filled with water or other suitable liquid, air bubbles being eliminated, and then, by applying pressure to the exposed portion of the vessel, a predetermined quantity of the liquid is expelled and the opening hermetically sealed without the admission of air. Thus the vessel, though full of water, is not dilated and the area exposed for the reception of the sole is flabby and easily conformable to the sole and shoe presented to it.

Each of the pad boxes carries means for holding a shoe in pressing relation to the pad and of course a sufiicient number of combined pad boxes and shoe supports will be provided to supply a machine and operator so that the shoes may be maintained under pressure long enough for the cement to set Without delaying the operator.

In accordance with further features of the invention, the illustrated machine is provided with mechanism by which, after the shoe and sole have been properly located with respect to each other and to the pad, preliminary pressure may be manually applied to the shoe, and with means by which a portion of the vessel forming the pad may then be distorted to effect distortion of the portion of the vessel which engages the sole thereby to apply the required predetermined pressure to the liquid in the pad and hence to the shoe sole. Means is provided on the illustrated pad box for maintaining the vessel in distorted condition and hence making each pad box and shoe support a self-contained unit so that the pressure will be retained even if the arrangement is such that the shoe and the pad'box are removed bodily from the machine. 'For obtaining the required predetermined final pressure, gravity-actuated means is preferably employed which, as illustrated, comprises a weight acting through compound leverage to distort the vessel. The weight, when allowed to act, applies, of course, a constant pressure to the means for distorting the vessel irrespective of the distance through which the weight may move.

When a small shoe is being operated upon. a larger area of the distortable or dilatable sole engaging member will be exposed at the ends of the shoe than when a large shoe is being operated upon. When the pressure is applied this exposed area at the ends of the shoe will bulge up thus rendering the heel seat portion and the toe portion of the sole unduly convex and also preventing the required pressure per unit of area from being applied to the bottom of the shoe by a predetermined amount of distortion of the bottom of the vessel. Hence, in the illustrated machine, and in accordance with still another feature of the invention, masking-off means are provided at the toe and heel ends of the pad. These means comprise separate stiff plates arranged at the toe and heel ends of the pad and adjustable lengthwise of the pad, over the outer surface thereof, the inner ends of the plates being preferably curved to correspond approximately to the curvatures of the ends of a shoe sole. When a small shoe is being treated, these plates may be adjusted inwardl The liquid containing vessel forming the pad is preferably integrally formed of rubber molded over a coreand vulcanized. Preferably the top of the vessel or dilatable member has incorporated therein a strengthening layer of fabric to control the stretching of this portion of the vessel without affecting its conformability to the shape of the shoe, bottom. In order to control the upward defiection of the exposed surface of the vessel, me tallic plates may be inserted in the rubber during the manufacture of the'vessel at theforepart or at the heel part engaging portions of the vessel or at both. These plates are preferably of thin spring steel provided with perforations through which rubber may extend and bond the plates into the structure of the vessel. In order to afiord the desired higher flexibility of the forepart engaging portion of the vessel the steel plate, if one is used in that portion of the vessel, may be slit or slotted, preferably in directions approximately perpendicular to the periphery of the sole.

In the manufacture of many shoes, particularly womens shoes, it is important that pressure be so applied to thesole that the forep'art and. heel part will remain relatively iiat'while the margins of the shank portion of the sole will be bent closely against the upper to form a close shank having a convex transverse curvature. these results can best be secured by a pad the sole engaging face of which is shaped to correspond to the longitudinal shape and curvature of the bottom of an average shoe, the forepart and heel flected, responds to the pressure of the sole, and

is caused to change its contour, the shank engaging portion of the pad thenbecoming concave transversely-and the portions of the pad at each side of the shank assuming a convex contour which, when pressure isapplied, enables the pad to wrap the margins of the shank portion of the sole toward the shoe upper.

These and other features or" the invention, including various other novel combinations and arrangements of parts, will appear more fully from the following detailed description when read in connection with the accompanying drawings and will be pointed out in the appended claims.

In the drawings,

Fig. 1 is a perspective-view of a machine embodying the present invention;

Fig. 2 is a front elevation of the machine;

Fig. 3 is a longitudinal section, partly in elevation, of the upper portion of the machine;

Fig. -i is an exploded detail view of the toe rest;

Fig. 5 is a fragmentary perspective view of the top of the table, showing the pad box locating and holding devices;

Fig. 6 is a plan view of the sole h lding shoe locating mechanism;

Fig. 7 is an enlarged longitudinal section of the mechanism for holding and locating the forepart of the sole and shoe;

.Fig. 8 is an exploded view of parts shown in Fig. '7;

Fig. 9 is a sectional detail on the line IXIX of Fig. 8;

Fig. 10 is a perspective view of the heel end of the pad box showing means for locking the I have found that vessel distorting means in pressure retaining position;

Fig. 11 is a plan view of the heelend of the bottom of the pad box;

Fig. 12 is a'transverse section of the heel end of the pad box on the line XII-XII of Fig. 11;-

'Fig. 13 is a longitudinal section of the parts shown in Fig. 10;

Fig. 14 is a perspective view of the mechanism' parts shown Fig. 1'7 is a perspective, partly in section, of the vessel, the upper wall of which forms thedilatable member for receiving the sole;

Fig. 18 is a fragmentary perspective view, partly in section, showing a modified form of parts shown in Fig. 17;

Fig. 19 is a plan view similar to the left-hand portion of- Fig. 6 showing mechanism. for adjusting the members which engage the edge face of the forepart of the sole equally and oppositely with respect to the shoe engaging members; and

Fig. 20 is a sectional view on the line XXXX of Fig. 19.

The illustrated machine for locating a sole and shoe relatively to each other and for pressing the shoe and sole together while cement with which they are coated sets comprises a table 20 (Fig. -1) supported by upright angle bars or-legs 22 to which, at their upper ends, end plates 24 are attached and, at their lower ends, angle bars 26 are secured to hold them in vertical alinement. On the table 2.0 is a pad box 28 which encloses a flexible, dilatable and distortable vessel 30 forming a sole pad, the portion of the upper surface of awall 31 of the vessel being exposed. This wall 31 is hereinafter referred to as a dilatable member or simply as a pad, and the bottom 33 of the vessel is referred to as a distortable memher or portion. A cover 32 is attached at 34 to the box and is provided with a sole-shaped open ing of a-size toreceive the largest sole to be treated by the machine. The vessel 30 forming the pad preferably contains a liquid such as water by which it is filled but. not distended so that its exposed surface is flabby and readily conformable to a sole placed thereon. The longitudinal contour of .the pad is such, howev'en-that when an operator places a sole on the pad in a roughly selected position and presses down upon it lightly the sole will assume a longitudinal contour substantially like that of the shoe bottom'to which it is to be attached.

The purpose of the mechanism about to be described is to find and grasp a'sole thus placed on the pad in a position selected by the operator, to

similar plate 40 is similarly secured. To the plate 1 36 is pivoted at 42 a plate 44 which carries the mechanism for engaging the foreport of the sole and shoe, a similar plate 46 being similarly mounted on the plate 40 for carrying the mechanism for engaging the rear portion of the sole and shoe. The plates 44 and 46 are held in adjusted position about their pivots 42 by braces 48 and 49 (Fig. 2) pivoted at their upper ends respectively to the plates 44 and 46, and adjustably held by bolt-and-slot connections 4'7 to the upright plates 36, 40. At'each side of the plate 44 are two strips 50, 51 spaced apart by a narrow strip 52 to provide grooves between the strips 50,

. 51 in which the side edges of a slide 53 are guided.

.62 and a supporting plate 64. To the upper side of the blocks 58 are secured a plate 66 similar to 64 and a relocating plate 68 similar to 62. The blocks 58 space the outer ends of the plates 64, 66 apart, and between the plates near their inner ends two pairs of levers '70, '71 and '72, 73-are pivoted, the upper pair of levers being directly superposed upon the lower pair and having their inner arms (that is, those at the right of Fig. 8) longer than the corresponding arms of the lower pair '72, '73. Pivot pins '74, pass through holes in the upper plate 66 and in the lower plate 64, the pin 74 serving. as a common pivot for the levers'70, '72 and the pin '75 providing a common pivot for the levers '71, 73. Spacing collars or washers '78 are provided on the pins '74, 75 above and below the levers to provide space for a cam plate below the levers and for a similar cam plate 82 above the levers. Each of the cam plates 80, 82 has three straight slots 84, 86, 88. The slots 84 and 86 of each plate are inclined with respect to each other, the inner ends being nearer together, while the slot-88 extends in a direction to bisect the angle formed by the other two-slots. The slots 88 in the cam plates 80, 82 are engaged by a pin 90 held at its lower end in the plate 64 and at its upper end inthe plate 66. The slots 84, 84 in the upper and lower cam plates- 80, 82 are engaged, respectively, by a pin 92 projecting upwardly from the end of the outer arm of the lever '70 and by a similar pin projecting downwardly from the end of the outer arm of the lever '72. The levers '71, 73 at the opposite side of the mechanism are similarly connected, respectively, to the slot 86in the cam plate 82 and to a similar slot in the lower cam plate 80. The inner end of each of the levers '70, '71 is provided with two work engaging members 95, 96, the members or gages 95 being adapted to engage the shoe in the region of the ball line and to overlie the sole, and the members or feelers 96 being adapted toengage the edge face of the sole. The inner end of each of the levers '72, '73 is provided with two work engaging members 97, 98, the mem bers or gages 9'7 being adapted 'to engage the shoe in the region of the tip line and to overlie the sole, and the members or feelers 98 being adapted to engage the edge face of the sole. The members or feelers 96 are formed on arms 100 which are pivoted at 102 to the levers '70, '71. The members or feelers 98 are formed on arms 104 pivoted at 106 to the levers '72, '73. The members 95, 96 and 9'7, 98 may be adjusted relatively to eachother.

each of the levers and has an eccentric portion For thispurpose a headed stud 108 (Fig. 9) is mounted for rotation in the end of- 110 which engages a hole in the arm 100 or 104, the hole being elongated in the direction in which the levers extend. By turning the studs 108 by means of their square heads, the arms 100 and 104 may be swung inwardly or outwardly to locate the sole engaging members or feelers 96, 98 relatively to the shoe gages 95, 97 in accordance with the amount which the sole projects outwardly beyond the upper at the particular part of the shoe which the members engage. Since the sole projection at the sides of the shoe varies not only in difierent shoes but at opposite sides of the same shoe, depending on whether it is a right or a left shoe, the engaging members 96, 98 are made independently adjustable relatively to the members 95, 9'7. For convenience in making these adjustments the positions of the eccentric portions 110 of the studs 108 are indicated by pointers 112 secured to the heads of the studs.

To engage the end of the sole and shoe a bar 114 is provided which has at its inner end a shoe gage 116 and a feeler 118 for engaging the end-of the sole. Since the projection of the sole at the end of the shoe is substantially constant, this feeler and gage are not made relatively adjustable. The bar 114 is mounted to slide lengthwise on the top of the plate .66, being guided therein byribs 120 on the under side of a cap plate 122 which is held in place by screws 124 which engage threaded holes in the ends of the ivot pins '74, '75. Under the plate 122 and pivoted on upward projections of the pins '74, '75 are looking pawls 126, 128, each having a tooth arranged to engage ratchet teeth 132 formed on opposite edges of the bar 114. The pawls are 'urged toward the bar 114 by springs 134 'connected between pins located respectively on the pawls and on the cap plate 122. The teeth 132 on one side of the bar 114 are one half a tooth in advance of those on the other side of the bar, 115

engage inclined tails 138 on the pawls. The bar 114 is normally held toward the shoe by a light helical spring 140 (Fig. '7) connected between a pin 141 on the outer end of the bar 114 and an pin 142 on the cap plate 122.

80, 82 are also urged toward the shoe by long,

relatively strong, helical springs, the upper one 144 of which is connected to a pin 146 on the cam plate 82 at one end'and at the other end passes through the spring 140 and is connected 130 to the same pin 142. The lower spring 148 is similar and is similarly connected at one end to a pin 150 on the cam plate 80 and at the other end to a pin 152 depending from the supporting plate 64. The pins 146 and 150 pass respectively upwardly and downwardly through wide slots 154, 156 formed in the plates 66, 64, respectively, and when the cam plates are drawn outwardly against the springs 144, 148, the pins 146, 150 engage bell-mouthed notches 158, 159, 140

respectively,in the relocating plates 62, 68, to

The cam plates 125 end attached at 172 to the slide 53 (Fig. 7) the plate 44 being slotted at 173 to permit such attachment of the chain. When the slide 53 is moved toward the pad by the weight 166, the rolls 162 pass beyond the inner ends of the cam bars 164 and rest upon the strips 50. This permits the mechanism carried between the plates 64, 66 to drop downwardly about the pivots 60 so that the sole engaging members 96,98, 118- will rest upon the pad or dilatable member 31. Inward movement of the slide 53 is limited by engagement of the inner end of the slide with a stop 174 (Fig. 7) secured to the inner end of the. plate 44, the sole engaging members being then in position to grasp theforepart 'of the sole.

To withdraw the slide 53 from the pad, a rectangular link 180 (Fig. 8) is arranged between the cam plates 80, 82, and a pin 182 on the cam plate 80 extends upwardly into the link 180 for about half the thickness of the link and a similar pin 183 on the cam plate 82 extends downwardly for half the thickness of the link. A pull outwardly on the link 180 therefore will retractthe cam plates 80, 82 against the tension of the springs 144,148 until the pins 92 reach the ends of the slots 84, 86, and then the slide 53 will be withdrawn. The link 180 is connected to a chain 184 which passes over a pulley 186 (Fig. 2) mounted on the plate 44, thence through a slot in the upright plate 36, and over a pulley 188 mounted on the legs 22 to a treadle lever 190 to which it is secured at 191. The treadle lever 190 is fulcrumed on a rod 192 supported by the legs 22 (Figs. 1 and 2).

to lift the lever. The freeend of the lever is outturned and carries a treadle 198. On the treadle lever is pivoted a latch 200 which engages under the front angle bar 26 to hold the treadle depressed and the latch 200 has a tail 202 overlying the treadle, by pressure on which it may be released.

The operation of the mechanism describedfor holding the forepart of the sole and locating the 'forepart of the shoe relatively to the sole is as follows: The operator places a sole of any size within a wide range of sizes upon the dilatable member or pad 31 in any convenient position; that is, he does not need to exercise any special care in locating the sole. Preferably he will press the shank portion of the sole against the shank portion of the pad, which portion, being then undilated, readily responds to the pressure of the sole, and the double convex contour of this portion of the pad is changed by pressure of the sole to a transversely concave contour where it is engaged by the sole and to a transversely convex contour at each side of the shank portion of the sole.

latch 200 and allows the treadle to rise.' The weight 166 on the chain 168 causes the slide 53 to advance toward the pad until arrested by engagement with the stop 174, the cam bars 164 The treadle lever has -a brace 194 to which a spring 196 is connected While thus holding the sole with his fingers, the operator, with his foot, releases the.

sole engaging members or feelers 96, 98 resting on the surface of the dilatable member.

If one of the feelers 98 in its closing movement effected by inward movement of the cam plate under the influence of the spring 148 engages the edge face of the sole earlier than the other, the plate 80 shifts sidewise about the pin as acenter until both feelers 98 engage the sole, whereupon the levers 72 and 73 and the feelers are held against separation. Meantime the spring 144 has similarly operated the cam plate 82 to close the levers 70, '71 upon the sole, bringing the feelers 96, 96 against opposite edge faces of the sole in the region of the ball line and looking them against separation. As'the levera70, 71 approached their closed position, they released the pawls 126, 128, causing the bar 114 to be locked against movement away from the sole with its feeler 118 engaging the edge face of the end of the sole. Since the gage, surfaces .116, 97 and are invertical planes disposed inwardly of the sole with respect to the planes of the feeler surfaces 118, 98 and 96,1edges 204 (Figs. 8 and 9) between these surfaces overlie the margin of the' sole and hold it from upward movement. The feelers have thus found the forepart of the soleand now hold it at five points on its periphery. The sole may, however, if desired, be shifted bodily transversely of the pad or as to orientation, for, although the pairs of feelers 96, l 96 and 98, 98 are effectively held against relative movement of separation, each pair is independently movable against some frictional resistance in either direction transversely of the' pad, the cam plates-80, 82 being of course swung about the pin 90 in a direction opposite to that in which the corresponding pair of members 96 and 98 is moved. The size of the link1180 is such as to 7 permit transverse movement of the pins 182, 183

D it

therein if they move in oppositedirections, and 113 if they move inv the same direction the chain 184 and link 180 can swing with them.

While, under some conditions, the mechanism described will be effective for holding the sole,

and the shoe maybe located in proper relation i to the sole so held by simply placing the shoe upon the sole with its toe and sides in engagement with the gages 116, 97 and 95, it is desirable in order to meet all conditions to provide feelers for finding and holding also the rear portion of the sole, particularly since it is sometimes necessary slightly to distort the sole, in order to make thesole fit the shoe bottom, by shifting the rear portion of the sole transversely relatively to the forepart. Accordingly, feelers for finding and 1% holding the rear portion of the sole, which feelers can be shifted transversely of the pad, and gaging means for locating the rear portion of a shoe in proper relation to the rear-portion of the sole are provided, as illustrated in Figs. 1, 2, 3, 14, 15 and 16. On the slide 54, the mounte ing of which on the right-hand side of the machine has already been described, are ears 206 (Fig. 14) to which. blocks 208 are pivoted by screws 210. Secured at their outer ends .respectively to the, lower and upper faces of the blocks 208 are plates 212, 214. Mounted between these plates are a cam plate 216 similar to the cam plate 80, two levers 218, 220 similar 7 to the levers 72, 73, a sliding end abutment bar 222 similar to the bar 114, and two pawls 224, 226 similar to the pawls 126, 128. The cam plate 216 (Fig. 3) is urged inwardlyby a spring 227 connected between a pin 229 and the lower side of the cam plate and a pin 231 on the plate 212. m

, lower and upper. plates 212, 214, and the lever so that they will accurately position the rear.

220 and the pawl 226 are similarly pivoted on the opposite side of the mechanism. Beneath the levers 218, 220 is. a spacing member 230 to provide room for the cam plate 216 to operate. The outer ends of the levers 218, 220 are provided with downwardly projecting pins which engage inclined slots 231 in the cam plate 216 which act, when the cam plate is allowed to be operated by its spring 227, to close the inner ends of the levers toward the sole.. The cam plate 216 has in its inner end a slot 233 (Fig. 3) which is engaged by a pin 235 projecting upwardly from the plate 212 about which the plate can shift to permit movement of the inner ends of the levers 218, 220 transversely of the pad 31. When the cam plate 216 is drawn outwardly to separate the inner ends of the levers, the pin 229 projecting downwardly from the cam plate engages the bell-mouthed rear end of a slot 237 (Fig. 14)

in the plate 212 which causes the cam plate to be relocated in central position. The bar 222 is guided for longitudinal movement between ribs 232 formed on the spacing member 230 and is urged inwardly by a spring 234 (Fig. 3), connected at one end' to apin 236 on the plate 214 and at the other end to a pin 238 extending through a slot in the plate 214 and secured to the bar 222. When the levers 218, 220 are in open position, pins 240 fixed in the levers holdv the pawls 224, 226 out of. engagement with teeth 242 formed on the edges of the bar 222.

The inner ends of the levers 218 and 220 are provided with gage members 250 and feeler members 252 which are relatively adjustable in the same manner as the members 97 and 98 by eccentric adjusting studs 253. The members 250.

parts of soles of diiferent shapes. The .inner end of the bar 222 is turned downwardly at a right angle to provide an end abutment 256 for the rear end of the sole and shoe.

The plate 212 has rolls 258 mounted thereon which engage cam bars 260 which, when the slide 54 is -moved toward the pad, allow the members 252, 256 to descend into engagement with the exposed surface of the dilatable member 31. To move the slide 54 inwardly toward the pad, a weight 262 (Fig. 1) is provided which is attached to a chain 264. The chain extends upwardly over a pulley 266 pivoted to the plate 40 at 42 through a slot 268 (Fig. 1) in the plate 46 and is attached to the slide 54. To separate the positioning members 250 and 252 and to withdraw the slide 54, a chain 270 is connected to the cam plate 216 at 272 (Fig. 14), extends over a pulley 274 (Fig. 2) mounted on the plate 46, is carried over a pulley mounted similarly to the pulley 188 on the same axis, and is connected at 191 to the treadle lever 190 so that depression of the treadle98 will retract the positioning mechanism at the toe end of the pad and that at the heel end of the pad simultaneously.

During the operation of locatingthe forepart of the sole and the shoe, as above described, the slide 'top of the cone of the last. Prior to the intro- 54 will move inwardly in response to the weight 262, causing the positioning members 252 and 256 to advance toward the shoe and drop into engagement with the dilatable member 31, due to passage of the rolls 258 off of the ends of the cam bars 260. The movement of the slide 54 is limited by engagement of the slide with a block 271 (Fig. 14) pivoted by a screw 273 onthe plate 46. The screw is located at different distances from the side and end faces of the block so that, by rotating the block, any one of these faces may be utilized as a stop for the slide 54 and hence the position of the gages 250 and feelers 252 lengthwise of the pad may be varied to adapt them for engaging soles of difierent lengths. When tension on the chain 270 is released, the cam plate 216 is moved inwardly by its spring 227, causing the feelers 252 to close upon and find the sole in position where it has been placed by the operator and .the abutment 256 is locked against outward movement. It being understood that the forepart feelers and gages have operated as described simultaneously with the heel end feelers and gages, the shoe may now be placed on the sole and, assuming that proper relative adjustments of the shoe and sole engaging members have been made, the shoe will be properly located relatively to the sole at all parts of its periphery. In placing the shoe between the gage members 250, it may be necessary to shift the rear part of the sole transversely 105 relatively to the forepart one way or the other in order for the sole properly to fit the shoe. For this purpose the levers 218, 220 may be moved together transversely of the pad, the cam plate 216 swinging in the opposite direction and the 110 levers 218, 220 being at the same time locked against separation by the cam plate. This movement is, of course, usually slight and is necessary only when the swing of a died out sole does not correspond accurately to the swing of the last.

The shoe and sole having been properly located with respect to each other in the manner and by the means described, it is desirable to apply preliminary pressure to the shoe and last'to force the shoe down upon the dilatable member 31 to 120 cause the sole to be brought into contact with the shoe bottom substantially throughout its extent and to bring the sole and shoe bottom into proper vertical relation to the dilatable member in order that sufiicient additional pressure may be applied 125 to the sole by distortion of the vessel 30, of which the dilatable member 31 is a part, without undue distortion of the exposed portion thereof.

For this purpose a bail or yoke, comprising arms 280 pivoted at their lower ends at 281 to the box 28 and fixedly joined at their upper ends by a transverse bar 282, is provided. In the bar 282 is mounted a vertically movable plunger 284 having on'its lower end a foot 285 to engage the duction of a shoe, the yoke may be swung outwardly of the pad until one of the arms 280 engages the stop pin 286 (Fig. 1). For the toe portionof the shoe a toe rest 288 is provided which is mounted for vertical movement in a transverse 146 bar 292 secured to upright arms 294 pivoted at 296 to the box 28. The toe rest, as shown in Fig. 4, comprises a block 288 having a transversely concave lower face to which a covering 289 of suitable material, such as leather or felt, is se- 5 cured by screws 291. The block 288 is rotatably attached to the lower end of a plunger 290 by a screw 293 and a pin 295 in the plunger engages a slot in the block 288 to limit the'turning movement of the block, suflicient movement being per- 150 ,mitted to enable the concave shoe engaging face of the rest properly to engage the toe portions of right and left shoes. The forepart yoke,-comprising the parts 292, 294, 294, which carries the toe rest, may be swung outwardly against a stop pin 298 but such movement of the forepart yoke is not essential since, when the yoke carrying the last supporting foot 285 is swung out of the way, the toe of the shoe may'be readily introduced under the toe rest 288, the rest at that time being held in elevated position by a spring 300. A similar spring 302 is provided-to hold the plunger 284 in raised position. A pawl 304 (Fig; 3) is mounted on each of the transverse bars 282, 292, to engagesuitable teeth formed on the plungers 284, 290, the pawls being held in engagement with the teeth by springs 306 and being releasable by engagement of the operators hands with upwardly extending portions 308 of the pawls.

To depress the plunger 284 the following mechanism is provided: A bracket 310 is pivoted at 312 to a projection 314 (Fig. 5) on the table 20. When not in use the bracket 310 swings by gravity to the right against a stop 316 on the table 20. When in use, the bracket is swung into a substantially vertical position against a ledge 318 on the projection 314. The bracket 310 is bored to receive a sleeve 320 (Fig. 3) and in the sleeve is a plunger 322 having a head 324 which, when the bracket is in vertical position, will be 10-,

bated over the top of the plunger 284 which engages the top of the last. The sleeve 320 and plunger 322 are held normally raised by a spring 326 (Fig. 1) which engages a pin 328. This pin extends through a long slot 329 in the bracket 310 through a short slot 330 in the sleeve 320 and'is fixed in the plunger 322, as is clearly shown in Fig. 3. The upper end of the sleeve 320 is bifurcated and between the bifurcations is pivoted at 332 a lever 334 (Figs. 1 and 3) having a cammed surface 336 which engages the plunger 322 and operates, when .the lever 334 is swung forwardly, to depress the plunger 322 relatively to the sleeve 320. A pawl 338 pivoted on the bracket 310 engages teeth on the sleeve to permit downward and prevent upward move ment of'the sleeve. The pawl may be released by pressure on an upwardly extending portion 340; On the bracket- 310 is a projection 342 which, when the bracket is swung toward verti-.

cal position, will engage the rear arm 280 of the heelend yoke and swing it also into vertical position to locate the plunger 284 over thelast if it has not already been so located.

For depressing the plunger 290 carrying the toe rest 288, a substantial duplicate of the mechanism described for the last depressing plunger 284 is provided, some of the parts being reverseat the same time to depress both ends of the shoe simultaneously.

Whe n the operator has placed a shoe on the pad as described and wishes to apply initial or preliminary pressure to the shoe and last to press it against the sole on the pad, he swings .pressure may thus be applied to the shoe, this the brackets 310, 310 into vertical position, thus 7 causing the plunger 284 and one of the plungers 322 to be brought into vertical alinement over the top of the last, as shown in Fig. 3, and

the other plunger 322 and the plunger 290 to be brought into vertical alinement over the toe portion of the shoe. For this purpose the levers. 334, 334 may be grasped, one in each hand of the operator, and swung into upright position, the cam surfaces 336, 336 being so formed that this movement of the levers does not cause depression of the plungers 322, 322. Whatever space there may be between the last and the plunger 284, between the shoe and the plunger 290, or between the upper ends of these plungers and the plungers 322, 322, or both, willbe taken up by pushing downwardly on the levers 334, 334, flanges 335 being provided onthe levers 334, 334 to prevent the operators hand from slipping downwardly on the levers. The sleeves 320, 320 will thus be pushed downwardly to take up these spaces and insure that the plungers 284, 290 are brought into engagement with the last and shoe, and, if desired, some downward pressure being of course held by the pawls 304, 304. The levers,334, 334 are then swung over toward the operator into substantially horizon-- tal positions, causing the cam surfaces336 to depress the plungers 322, 322 and hence the plungers 284, 290 to apply preliminary pressure to the shoe and last. If, in the judgment of the operator, the preliminary pressure thus produced is insufficient, he may throw the levers 334, 334 into upright positions, push down the sleeves 320, 320, and again operate the levers 334, 334 to increase the preliminary pressure. The pawls 304, 304 will of course retain the pressure thus produced and the pressure may be built up to the desired extent. Under usual M5 conditions, however, a single operation of each of the levers 334, 334 will be sufficient to produce the required preliminary pressure to locate the shoe vertically in proper relation to the body of the dilatable member 31.

The preliminary pressure thus applied being held by the pawls 304, 304, the levers 334, 334 may be thrown back, whereupon the springs 326, 326 will lift the plungers 322, 322 as far as permitted by the slots ,330, 330, thus freeing the brackets 310; 310 carrying the preliminary pressure apply ing mechanism for outward swinging movement by gravity about their pivots 312, 312 until arrested by the stops 316, 316. During this movement the pawls 33s, 33s by which the sleeves 320, 320 are held depressed are automatically released. For this purpose; at the left-hand side of the machine a rod 344 (Fig. 5) is pivoted at 345 to a part fixed on the table 20, for example to the stop 316, the pivot 345 being spaced laterally from the pivot 312 so that there will be relative movement between the upper end of the rod 344 and the bracket 310. As shown in Fig. 1, the rod 344 engages under a half conical formation on the end of a lever 346 pivoted between its ends to ears 348 on the bracket 310 and having its other end arranged to engage the upwardly projecting portion 340 of the sleeve by the slot 329. At the right-hand side of the;

machine similar mechanism is provided forreleasing the other sleeve holding pawl 338.

To locate the box 28 on'th'e table 20, the box is provided at the left rear corner with an L-shaped leg 350 (Fig. 3), the horizontal. part of which engages under a lug 352 (Fig. 5) secured to the table 20. At the right-hand end of the box are two reverseiy L-shaped legs 354 which engage under a flange 356 formed on a bar secured to the table 20. This construction, of course, prevents upward movement of the box with respect to the table, The box is guided into engagement with the lug 352 and the flange 356 and is located longitudinally by oppositely inclined surfaces 358, 360 formed on blocks secured to the table 20. If the box is too far to the left when placed upon the'table, it will, when pushed rearwardly, be moved to the right by the inclined surface 358 and if it is too far to the right the surface 360 will act reversely to move it toward the left. The rearward position of the box is determined by upright pins 362. The box positioning means described not only locates the box so that the yokes will bebrought into proper relation to the last depressing plunger but also locates the box in proper relation to mechanism for applying the final pressure to the sole, which will now be described.

The bottom of the box 28 (Fig. 3) has an upwardly movable portion 366 which, when the box is positioned as described, overlies a plunger 368 which extends upwardly through the table 20. The plunger is pivoted to a lever 3'70 at a point nearer one end of the lever than the other so that the lever has unequal arms. The end of the. longer arm of the lever 3'70 is fulcrumed at 372' to ears secured to the under side of the table. The shorter arm of the lever '370 is pivoted at 374 to the shorter arm of an unequal armed lever 3'76 fulcrumed at 378 between its ends to ears secured to the under side of the table 20 and having the end of its longer arm connected by a link 380 (Fig. 1) to an unequal armed lever 382 between its ends. The end of the shorter arm of the lever 382 is fulcrumedon a rod 384 extending between ears 386 secured to the left-hand legs 22 of the table and on its longer arm a heavy weight 388 is suspended. The'arrangement'is such that descent of the weight by gravity acts, through the powerful compound leverage'described, to raise the plunger 368 which pushes upwardly on the movable portion 366 on the bottom of the box 28. This causes distortion of the bottom 33 of the vessel 30 and, since the vessel is confined at its sides by the walls of the box 28 and at the top by the shoe sole, the pressure produced by operation of the plunger 368 will be transmitted through the liquid contained in the vessel to the bottom of the sole. The parts are preferably so proportioned and the plunger movement is such that pressure of the'order of seventy pounds per square inch-may be applied to the sole.

When a smaller shoe is being treated a less area of the exposed wall 31 of the vessel 30, that is of the dilatable member, is covered by the sole and hence there will be more upward deflection of the wall 31 about the periphery of the sole, particularly at the ends of the shoe. This dilation may be so great as materially to reduce the pressure per square inch which can be applied to the shoe by the amount of distortion of the bottom 33 for which the machine is designed. To overcome these conditions means is provided for controlling the dilation of the dilatable member, that is, the top wall 31 of the vessel. It will be understood that the length variation in shoes is shoe.

much greater than the width variation, and that therefore it is unimportant as a practical matter to control the dilation'of the member 31 at the sides of the shoe. Therefore, as illustrated, means for controlling the relation of the member 31 at the ends of the shoe only is provided. For this purpose masking-off plates 390, 392 (Figs. 1 and. 10) are provided which are arranged to slide lengthwise of the shoe beneath the cover 32 of the box and over the surface of the-dilatable member 31. The plates 3,90, 392 have their inner ends curved to correspond approximately to the shape, respectively, of the toe and heel ends of the By adjusting these plates inwardly when a small shoe is being treated, the amount of deflection of the top wall 81 of the vessel 30 may be controlled at the ends of the shoe, with the result that the pressure per square inch applied to a small sole will be substantially the same as that applied to a large sole. The construction and arrangement of the heel plate 392 is clearly shown in Fig. 10. At its inner end the plate 392 has downwardly turned lugs 394 which engage between the side walls of the vessel 30 and the side walls of the box 28. The outer end of the plate has a narrow portion 396 which extends through a slot in the end of the box 28 as a flange 398 by which the plate 392 may be conveniently adjusted lengthwise of the pad 31. The toe plate 390 is of similar construction and is similarly arranged at 10 the opposite end of the box 28.

It is, of course, desirable that a large number of pads and pad boxes with their attendant shoe holding devices be'provided with each-machine, and that. after the sole has been put under pres- 110 sure in the manner described, such pressure may be' maintained unaltered for an indefinite time, the pad box and the shoe being removed from the; machine and set aside for the cement to dry and another pad box placed in the machine for op- 15 eration on another shoe. It is necessary, therefore, to provide on the pad box means to maintain the movable portion 366 of the bottom of the box in the position in which it was placed by operation of the plunger 368.and thus to main- 20 tain the pressure. For this purpose mechanism shown particularly in Figs. 10 to 13 is provided.

The movable portion 366 of the bottom of the box 28 is provided with a projection 400 the lower endof which is engaged by the plunger 368 and 5 the front and rear sides of l which are inclined downwardly and toward each other to form a wedge (Fig. 12). a

Pivoted at 402 to the bottom of the box 28 is a lever 404 (Fig. 11) which between its ends has a 1 notch 405 which engages one side of the wedge 400. A similar notched lever 406 is similarly pivoted to the bottomof the box and engages by its notch the opposite side of the wedge 400. The notches 405 in the'levers prevent movement of the wedge 400 and hence of the movable portion 366 lengthwise of the levers 404, 406. The levers 404, 406 are urged toward each other by a spring 408 connected between them. To look the levers in engagement with the wedge ,400 means for locking together the outer ends of the levers is provided, as best shown in Figs. 10 and 13. The outer ends of the levers 404, 406 pass through a slot in the end of the box 28 and are supported by a fiat surface 409 formed on a part of the box 28. A member 410 is fixed to the free end of the lever 404, and to the member 410 is pivoted at 412 an arm 414 in which is arranged a slide 416.

The slide is urged outwardly of the arm by a spring 418 mounted in the slide between its outer 15C locked, the plunger 368 will be applying upward pressure to the wedge 400 and the levers 404, 406 will be closed against the wedge by the spring 408. The arm 414 will be swung toward the lever 406 by a spring 426 suitably connected about its pivot 412 to swing the arm toward thebox 28, the

pawl 424 having been released to permit the slide 416 to be moved outwardly by the spring 418. To look the wedge 400 the operator hooks a finger over a pin .428 on the' arm 414 and pushes the slide 416 inwardly with his thumb, the pawl 424 of course holding it. The inner end of the slide 416, which preferably is wedge shaped as illustrated, is first engaged with a fiat surface 429 on the lever 406 and holds the levers closed upon the wedge. Then by swinging the arm 414 toward the box the wedge-shaped end of the slide 416 is forced over a 'cammedsurface 430. on the lever 406 until it rests on another-fiat surface 431 on the lever 406, movement of the arm 414 being then arrested by a stop pin 433 on the lever.' This construction and mode of operation insure that if full pressure of the levers against the wedge is not secured by movement of the slide 416 because of the space between the teeth 422 on the slide, such pressure or more will be obtained by movement of the wedged end of the slide over the cammed surface 430 of the lever 406.

The pressure-of the plunger 368 may now be released. This is done by operation of a treadle lever 432 (Fig. 1) fulcrurned at 434 on the rear leg 22 at the right-hand'side of the machine and provided with a foot-piece 436. A chain 438 is connected to the lever 432 at one end, passes over a pulley 440 mounted on the table, and is connected at its other end to the lever 382. -When the foot-piece 436 is depressed, the weight 388 is raisedto relieve pressure on the plunger 368 and a spring 442 connected between the right front leg 22 and the pivot 374 between the levers 3'70, 376 operates to withdraw the plunger.

The treadle lever 432 is held in depressed position by locking means which, as illustrated, comprises a button 444 pivoted at 446 onrthe right front leg 22 and held -in horizontal position by a spring 448. When the treadle lever is depressed the button 444 will turn to permit the lever to pass below it, whereupon it is restored to horizontal position by the spring 448. To prevent turning of the buttonin response to upward movement of the lever 432 when released, a latch is provided which comprises an angle lever 450 pivoted at 452,'beneath one end of the button 444 and held by a spring 454 so that one arm of the angle lever engages that end of the button 7 that is, while the sole holding and shoe positioning devices are in operative position on the pad,

in which case the weight 388 is utilized to withdraw the 'sole holding and shoe positioning devices from their position over the pad and the resistance of the smaller weights 166, 262 is utilized to prevent too suddenapplicatio'n of force to the plunger 368. To this end a rod 456 is pivoted to the treadle lever 190 and passes upwardly through a hole in a lug 458 secured to the lever 382'. On the rod 456 a sleeve 460 is adjustably held and located on the rod between the sleeve 460 and the lug 458 is a helical spring 462 surmounted by a collar 463, the spring being of suificient strength to cause partial depression of the lever 190 when the weight 388 is released, as shown in Fig. 2, and consequently causing withdrawal of the sole holding and shoe positioning devices from their-operative position over the pad. The compression of the spring 462 is released and the sole holding and shoe position- ,ing devices fully withdrawn by further depres-' sion of the treadle 19s to its-locked position, the full force of the weight 388 being then applied to the plunger 368.

The vessel 30, the top wall 31 of which has been hereinbefore referred toas the pad or dilatable member and the bottom wall 33 of which has been referred to as the distortable member, is preferably shaped a::d constructed as shown in Fig. 17. The side,end and bottom walls are, of course, confined by the box 28 the cover 32 of which confines the margin of the top wall 31 surrounding asOle-Shaped area exposed by an opening in the cover. a longitudinal contour corresponding substantially to the longitudinal contour of the bottom of a shoe. The part on which the forepart of the 'shoe rests and the part on which the heel-seat portion of the shoe rests are substantially'fiat. These parts, however, are not in parallel planes but are inclined to each other substantially at the angle between the plane of the forepart and the kind being made, for example a womans shoe.

The--two comparatively fiat end portions of the wall 31 are connected by a shank portion 35 which is normally convex both transversely and longitudinally. This portion is readily depressible by pressure of the shank portion ofa sole against it and is by such pressure made to assume a transversely concave curvature where engaged by the shank of the sole, the portions at each side. of the shank being made to assume transversely convex curvatures. When the portions of the dilatable member under the shank and at each side thereof have been made to assume the described'contour the shank portion 35 is distorted outwardly or dilated to cause the sole to be wrapped about the shank portion of the shoe and The top wall 31 has" plane of the heel-seat of an average shoe of the brought close to the upper at its margin either rubber, sheets of rubber composition maybe wrapped about a frangible core to form walls of suitable thickness and then the whole vulcanized in a suitable mold. The core may be broken up and removed through an opening cut in one of the walls. In Fig. 17 an opening made for removing the core is indicated at 468. This opening may be closed in any suitable mannenfor example by applying a metal plate 470 (Fig. 3) over the opening inside the vessel and. securing the plate by bolts extending through the plate, through holes in the vessel adjacent to the opening 468 and through the bottom of the box 28. The end of the vessel (Fig. 17) is shown as having two holes 472, 473 in one of which a filling tube 474 (Fig. 3) is provided and to the other of which a pressure gage 476 is connected.

The vessel is completely filled with water through the filling tube 4'74, all air bubbles being removed, and then by pressing on the wall 31 a portion of the water is caused to flow out and a cap screwed onto the filling tube hermetically to seal-the vessel. The wall 31 is then undistended and flabby, and, though the vessel is still full of water,'the wall 31 is readily responsive to and deformable by manual pressure of the sole upon it, particularly at the shank portion.

If rubber alone were'used to form a dilatable member of the thickness shown, it might under the pressure required stretch and bulge up too much in the space aboutthe periphery of the sole where the member is unconfined. Hence a sheet of canvas or other suitable fabric is introduced between the plies of rubber composition of which the upper wall 31 of the vessel is built up before vulcanization, as indicated at 478 in Fig. 1'1. This construction permits the required distortion of the shank portion 35 of the wall 31 to cause it to wrap the sole about the shank portion of the shoe, particularly because of the contour which this portion assumes when the sole is preliminarily pressed upon it and prevents stretching or' extension of the material and too much bulging of the member 31 at the sides of the shank and at other unconfined portions thereof about the shoe sole.

In order further to control deformation ofthe member 31 at the forepart and heel part when small shoes are being treated as. well as to prevent the margin of the sole of these or larger shoes from being bent toward the upper too far as, for example, when a substantially fiat forepart or heel part is desired, metal inserts may be incorporated into the material of which the member 31 is composed. Such metal inserts are shown at 480 and 482 in Fig. 17. The inserts 480, 482 may, for example, be plates of spring steel about .020 of an inch thick. The heel plate 482 is preferably intact except for a series of openings 484i in its marginal portion through which rubber is forced during the vulcanizing process to cause the layers of rubber above and below the plate to be bonded together and the plate retained in-place. The forepart plate 480. is preferably slit or-slotted longitudinally along its central line at 486 and has slits or slots 488 extending outwardly substantially radially from the point where the center of the toe'of a sole will be located on the pad. Slits or slots 490 are also made substantially perpendicular tothe central line 486 in the region where the ball portion of the sole will engage the pad. The plate having the slits 490 diminishes the transverse flexibility of the pad 31, that is, the facility with which it may be bent about axes extending lengthwise of the shoe and pad. without altering to the same extent its longitudinal flexibility, that is, the facility with which it may be bent about axes extending across the pad from side to side, and the radial slits 488 enable the portion of the pad 31 which is engaged by the toe of the sole to conform to the shape usually required at that portion of the sole.

In case uniform long tudinal flexibility in con-' nection with uniform transverse stiffness is required, the form of forepart plate shown in Fig. 18 may be employed. In this case slots or slits 492 are made in the plate extending from side to side of the pad, the slots being parallel to each other and equally spaced. In both Figs. 17 and 18 the slits in the forepart plates have at their ends holes or enlargements 494 to enable the uppet and lower layers of rubber to be bonded together and to prevent the slits from being extended ,by cracks through the margin of the plate.

The projection of the sole beyond the upper at the ball line not only varies in difierent styles of shoes but is different at the twosides of a shoe. In a pair of shoes the greater projection is on the outer sides of the shoes. If an operator receives for the application of soles first a batch of right shoes and then a batch of left shoes, the time required for making the necessary relative adjustments of the members 95, 96 isnot great, but when operating under conditions where first a right shoe and then a left shoe has to be operated upon a construction by which relative adjustment of the members 95, 96 may be efiected simultaneously at the two sides of the shoe is advantageous.

Such a construction is shown in Figs. 19 and 20 where the heads of the studs 108, by turning of which the members 96 are adjusted relatively to the'members 95, are formed as pinions 496 with which rack bars 498 mesh. The bars 498 are held inmesh with the pinions 496 by plates 500 secured to the bars and having slots 502 which engage reduced portions of the studs 108. A lever 504 is pivoted on the stud 74 and has a portion extending inwardly of its pivot '74 formed as a toothed segment 506 with which a similar toothed segment 508 mounted on the stud 75 meshes. One of the rack bars 498 is connected at 510 to the segment 5 08 and the other rack bar 498 is connected at 512 to the lever 504, the distancefrom the pivot 510to the pivot 75 of the segment 508 being equal to the distance from the pivot 512 to the pivot '74 of the lever 504. By

? movement of the lever 504 the rack bars 498, 498

are moved equally and oppositely to effect equal and opposite adjustment of the members 96 relatively to the members 95. It will be understood that the positioning members 97, 98, which engage the sole and shoe in the vicinity of the tip line, may be used with this construction though they have been omitted in Figs. 19 and 20 for the sake of clearness.

When the machine is to be operated, the parts will be in the condition shown in Fig. 1 except A that the yoke 280 will be swung outwardly against its stop 286. The operator places at random upon the dilatable member 31 a sole to which, for example, pyroxylin cement has been applied, allowed to dry, and then cut with a solvent. He presses down upon the sole, causing the shape of the doubly convex shank portion of the member 31 to be changed to a transversely concave contour under the sole and to a transversely convex contour at each side of the sole. The operator then releases the latch 200 and permits the weights 166, 262 to move the feelers and shoe gages from their positions withdrawn from the pad to their positions over the pad. The slides 53 and 54 will be arrested by their respective stops 1'74 and 271, and the cam bars 164, 260 will have allowed the positioning members to drop into engagement with the pad. During the inward movement of the slides the bars 114 and 222 will have engaged the toe and heel ends of the sole respectively and will have had their movement arrested by the sole. The feelers 98, 96, 252 will next be closed upon the sole by the inward movement of the cam plates 80, 82, 216, due to their operating springs 148, 144, 227, and the bars 114 and 222 will be locked against outward movement. The sole will now be held in the position in which the operator placed it. If either one of either pair of feelers reaches the sole before the other one of that pair, its movement will be arrested and the cam plate which operates that pair will swing on its pivot and continue its inward movement to cause the other one of the pair to engage the sole, each pair being then locked by the inclined slots in the cam plates against relative movement of separation. If the operator now finds that either end, or both ends, of the sole should be shifted transversely of the pad in either direction, he can so shift the sole, while the sole is still held, by applying lateral pressure to any one of any pair of feelers or to the corresponding shoe gages.

The sole having been properly located, a shoe to which the sole is to be attached and which also has cement applied to its bottom is slipped under the toe engaging plunger 290 and allowed to rest upon the sole. Then, assuming that the I proper relative adjustment of the sole engaging members or feelers 96, 98, 252, and. the shoe engaging members or gages 95, 9'7, 250 have been made by turning the eccentric studs 108, 253, the shoe will be properly located with respect to the sole by the act of placing the shoe on the sole.

The operator will now grasp one of the levers 334in each of his hands and swing the brackets 310, 310 in the'vertical position, the yokes 280, 294, or either of them, being by this movement swung to vertical position over the two ends of the shoe, if not previously so located, by the lugs 342 on the brackets 310. By depressing the levers 334, the sleeves 320 are pushed down and the the shoe, one or both of the levers 334 will be thrown up, the sleeve 320 again depressed, and the lever again operated to increse the pressure, t e pawl 304 of course retaining such pressure. W en the operatorhas obtained the desired preliminary pressure, which may be in the vicinity of twenty pounds per square inch, the levers 334, 334 are thrown back and, since the plungers 322, 322 are lifted by their springs 326, 326, the brackets are free to be swung back to the position shown in Fig. 1. This they tend to do by gravity, the weight of thegbrackets being so distributed with respect to their pivots 312 that they tend to swing outwardly away from each other. As they swing outwardly, the levers 346 are operated by the rods 344 to release the sleeveholding pawls 338 and the springs 326 act to raise the sleeves 320. Y v

The shoe is now ready to have the final pressure applied thereto and the operator trips the latch 450 to permit the weight 388 to act on the plunger 368. As the weight descends, the lug 458 on the lever 382 operates through the spring 462 to withdraw the cam plates 80, 82, 216, tore leasethe feelers and gages from the shoe, and partially to withdraw the slides 53 and 54. This operation insures that the feelers and gages-will be withdrawn from their operative position to a position where they cannot interfere with the application of final pressure to the shoe sole. During the withdrawal of the cam plates 80, 82, 216, they are restored to central position by engagement of the pins 150, 146, 229 with the bellmouthed notches in their respective relocating plates 62, 68, 212. The operator now completes the Withdrawal of the slides by depression of the treadle 198, thus relieving the compression of the spring 462 and permitting the full force of the weight 388 to be applied tothe plunger 368. The action of the plunger distorts the bottom wall of the vessel to apply final pressure to the shoe by forcing upwardly the movable bottom 366 of the box. The operator then operates the slide 416 and the arm 414 in the manner described to lock the pressure retaining levers 404, 406 against the wedge member 400. The operator next depresses the foot piece 436 to raise the weight and release the pressure on the plunger, whereupon the pad box with its attendant mechanism for retaining the shoe under pressure may be removed from the machine and set aside-for the time required for the cement to set and another pad box placed in the machine to receive the next shoe. When the shoe is to be released from the pad, the arm 414 is forced outwardly by hand or by a suitable implement, thus releasing the wedge 400. The shoe now being under only the preliminary pressure, the pawls 304, 304 are then readily released by pressing on the upwardly projecting portions 308, 308 to release the pressure completely and permit the shoe to be removed.

Having thus described my ,invention, what I claim as new and desire to secure by Letters Patent of the United States is:

1. In a machine for use in the manufacture of shoes, the combination of a pad to receive a sole of any size placed by the operator at random in any one of an indefinite number of operative positions, and feelers constructed and arranged to engage the edge face of the sole on the pad only at points in the vicinity of the ends of the tip line end of theends of the. ball line, said feelers coming to rest without disturbhappens to have been placed.

3. In a machine for use in the manufacture of shoes, the combination of a pad upon which a sole of any size may be placed at random by the operator, and means acting irrespectively of the position of the sole to engage said sole and to hold it in the position in which it was placed, said means being constructed and arranged to permit the bottom of a shoe to be placed in contact with the exposed face of the sole while the sole is so held.

4. In a machine for use in the manufacture of shoes, the combination of a pad upon which a sole of any size maybe placed in a position selected by the operator, feelers acting irrespectively of the position of the sole to find the periphery of the sole'at the toe end of the, sole means for locking said feelers against relative movement with respect to the sole.

5. In a machine for use in the manufacture of shoes, the combination of a pad upon which a sole may be placed in any one of a number of positions at the selection of the operator, members acting irrespectively of the position of the sole to engage the periphery of the sole at an end of the sole and on opposite sides of the sole while the sole is in said selected position, and means to lock said members against outward movement away from the sole.

6. In a machine for use in the manufacture of shoes, the combination of a pad upon which a sole is placed in a position selected by the operator, members movable inwardly toward the sole to engage the periphery of the sole at a plurality of points on each side of the sole, and means to hold said engaging members against outward movement with respect to the sole, said engaging members being constructed and arranged to be shifted in the plane of the sole on the pad while they are held against relative movement away from the sole.

'7. In a sole laying machine, the combination of a pad upon which a sole may be placed in a position selected by the operator, means for engaging the periphery of the sole irrespectively of its position at salient points on opposite sides of the sole, and means for locking said engaging means in engagement with the sole to hold it in said selected position.

8. In a machine for use in the manufacture of shoes, the combination of apad upon which a sole is placed by the operator,- feelers constructed and arranged to engage the periphery of the sole at a plurality of points on each side of the sole,and means to lock said feelers against outward movement away from the sole, said feelers being constructed and arranged to permit bodily shifting of the sole on the pad while they are locked against relative movement away from the sole.

9. In a machine for use in the manufacture of shoes, the combination of a pad upon which a sole may be placed at random'by the operator, and means acting irrespectively of the position of the sole for engaging the edge face of the sole so placed at points adjacent to the ends of the tip line and adjacent to the ends of the ball line to hold the forepart of the sole in the position in which it was placed.

10. In a machine for use in the manufacture of shoes, the combination of a pad upon which a sole is placed in a position selected by the operator, and means for engaging the edge face of the sole so placed at points on the two sides of the toe end and adjacent to the ends of the ball line normally to hold the forepart of the sole in the selected position, said holding means being constructed and arranged to. be shiftable in the plane of the sole by, the operator to enable the position ofthe sole on the pad to be changed.

"11. In a machine for use in the manufacture of shoes, the combination of a pad upon which a sole is'placed by the operator, a pair of feelers for engaging the edge face of the sole so placed at points adjacent to the ends of the tip line, means for holding said feelers against separation,

'a pair of feelers for engaging the edge face of the sole at points adjacent to the ends of the ball line, and means for holding the ball line engaging feelers against separation, said holding means being constructed and-arranged to permit shifting 'by'the operator of the two pairs of feelers relatively to each other in the plane of the sole.

esa-coo 12. In a machine for use in the manufacture of shoes, the combination of a pad upon which a sole is placed by the operator, means for engaging an edge face of the sole so placed at points adjacent to the ends of the tip line, means for holding the tip line engaging means against separation, means for engaging the edge face of the sole at points adjacent to the ends of the ball line, and means for holding the ball line engaging means against separation, said holding means being constructed and arranged to permit shifting of the ball line engaging means relatively to the tip line engaging means and vice versa, transversely of the sole, to permit orientation of the sole on the pad. i

13. In a machine for use in the manufacture of shoes, the combination of a pad upon which a sole is placed by the operator, members for engaging the edge face of the sole soplaced at points adjacent to the ends of the tip line and adjacent to the ends of the ball line, and a member to engage the toe end of the sole, said toe end engaging means being constructed and arranged to prevent forward endwise movement of the sole and said tip line and ball line engaging members being constructed and arranged for relative lateral shifting movement in the plane of the sole to 'permit orientation of the sole on the pad.

14. In a sole laying machine, the combination of a pad upon which a sole is placed by the operator, a pair of members for engaging the edge face of the sole so placed at points adjacent to the ends of the tip line, and a pair of members for engaging the edge face of the sole at points adjacent to the ends of the ball line, said members normally holding the forepart of the sole in the selected position, each pair of members being constructed and arranged to be shiftable laterally of the pad in the plane of the sole end by the operator to enable the lateral position of the sole on the pad to be changed while still held by said members.

15. In a machine for use in the manufacture of shoes, the combination of a pad upon which a sole is placed by the operator, a pair of members engaging the edge face of the sole so placed at points adjacent to the tip line, means for holding said members against separation, a pair of members for engaging the edge face of the sole at points adjacent to the ends of the ball line, and means for holding the ball line engaging members against separation, each pair of members being constructed and arranged for movement in the plane of the sole laterally of the pad in either direction to permit orientation of the sole in the plane of the sole while held by said members.

16. In a machine for use in the manufacture of shoes, the combination of a pad upon which a sole is placed, levers having members at their ends to engage the periphery of the sole at points on opposite sides of the sole, a plate having inclined slots, and pins on the levers engag- 'ing said slots, said plate acting to operate and 

